<h2>Name</h2>
<p>
The Surah takes its name from the sentence <em>Idha jaa kal-munafiquna</em> of
verse 1. This is the name of the Surah as well as the title of its
subject matter, for in it a review has been made of the conduct and
attitude of the hypocrites themselves.
</p>
<h2>Period of Revelation</h2>
<p>
As we shall explain below this Surah was sent down either during the
Holy Prophet's return journey from his campaign against Bani al-
Mustaliq, or immediately after his arrival back at Madinah, and we
have established by argument and research in the Introduction to Surah
An-Nur that the campaign against Bani al-Mustaliq had taken place in
Sha'ban A. H. 6:Thus, the date of the revelation of this Surah is
determined precisely.
</p>
<h2>Historical Background</h2>
<p>
Before we mention the particular incident about which this Surah was
sent down, it is necessary to have a look at the history of the
hypocrites of Madinah, for the incident that occurred on this occasion
was not a chance happening but had a whole series of events behind it,
which ultimately led up to it. 
</p>
<p>
Before the Holy Prophet's emigration to
Madinah the tribes of the Aus and the Khazraj, fed up with their
mutual rivalries and civil wars, had almost agreed on the leadership
of one man and were making preparations to crown him their king. This
was Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salul, the chief of the Khazraj. Muhammad
bin Ishaq has stated that among the people of Khazraj his authority
was never contested and never had the Aus and the Khazraj rallied to
one man before this. (Ibn Hisham, vol. II, p. 234)
</p>
<p>
Such were the conditions when the voice of Islam
reached Madinah and the influential people of both the tribes started
becoming Muslims. When before the Emigration, invitation was being
extended to the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah'> peace) to come to
Madinah, Hadarat Abbas bin Ubadah bin Nadlah Ansari wanted to defer
this invitation for the reason that Abdullah bin Ubayy also might join
in the declaration of allegiance and invitation to the Holy Prophet,
so that Madinah might become the centre of Islam by common consent.
But the delegation that arrived in Makkah to declare their allegiance
did not give any importance to the proposal of Abbas bin Ubadah, and
a11 its members, who included 75 men from both the tribes, became
ready to invite the Holy Prophet in the face of every danger.(lbn
Hisham, vol. II, P. 89). We have given the details of this event in
the Introduction to Surah Al-Anfal. 
</p>
<p>
Then, when the Holy Prophet arrived
in Madinah, Islam had so deeply penetrated every house of the Ansar
that Abdullah bin Ubayy became helpless and did not see any other way
to save his leadership than to become a Muslim himself. So, he entered
Islam along with many of his followers from among the chiefs and
leaders of both the tribes although their hearts were burning with
rage from within. Ibn Ubayy in particular was filled with grief, for
the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace) had deprived him of his
kingship. For several years his hypocritical faith and grief of being
deprived of his kingdom manifested itself in different ways. On the
one hand, when on Fridays the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's
peace) took his seat to deliver the Sermon, Abdullah bin Ubayy would
stand up and say "O people, the Messenger of Allah is present among
you, by whom Allah has honored you; therefore, you should support him
and listen to what he says and obey him." (Ibn Hisham, vol. III, p.
111). On the other, his hypocrisy was being exposed day by day and the
true Muslims were realizing that he and his followers bore great
malice against Islam, the Holy Prophet and the Muslims. 
</p>
<p>
Once when the
Holy Prophet was passing on the way Abdullah bin Ubayy spoke to him in
harsh words. When the Holy Prophet complained of it to Hadrat Sa'd bin
Ubadah; he said:"O Messenger of Allah, don't be hard on him, for when
Allah sent you to us we were making a diadem to crown him, and, by God,
he thinks that you have robbed him of his kingdom." (Ibn Hisham vol:
II, pp. 237-238). 
</p>
<p>
After the Battle of Badr when the Holy Prophet (upon
whom be Allah's peace) invaded the Jewish tribe of Bani Qainuqa on
their breaking the agreement and un provoked revolt, this man stood up
in support of them, and holding the Holy Prophet by his armor,
said:"These 700 fighters have been helping and protecting me against
every enemy; would you cut them down in one morning?By God, I will not
leave you until you pardon my clients." (Ibn Hisham, vol. III, pp. 5l-
52). 
</p>
<p>
On the occasion of the Battle of Uhud this man committed open
treachery and withdrew from the battlefield with 300 of his companions.
One should note that at this critical moment when he so acted, the
Quraish had marched upon Madinah with 3,000 troops and the Holy Prophet
had marched out with only 1,000 men to resist them. Of these 1,000
this hypocrite broke away with 300 men and the Holy Prophet was left
with only 700 men to meet 3,000 troops of the enemy in the field.
</p>
<p>
After this incident the common Muslims of Madinah came to realize
fully that he was certainly a hypocrite and his those Companions also
were found who were his associates in hypocrisy. That is why when on
the very first Friday, after the Battle of Uhud, this man stood up as
usual to make a speech before the Holy Prophet's Sermon, the people
pulled at his garment, saying "Sit down you are not worthy to say such
things." That was the first occasion in Madinah when this man was
publicly disgraced. Thereupon he was so filled with rage that he left
the mosque jumping over the heads of the people. At the door of the
Mosque some of the Ansar said to him, "What are you doing?Go back and
ask the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace) to pray for your
forgiveness." He retorted "I do not, want him to pray for my
forgiveness." (Ibn Hisham, vol. III, p. 111). 
</p>
<p>
Then in A. H. 4 the
Battle of Bani an-Nadir took place. On this occasion he and his
companions supported the enemies of Islam even more openly. On the one
side, the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace) and his devoted
Companions were preparing for war against their enemy, the Jews, and
on the other, these hypocrites were secretly sending messages to the
Jews to the effect: "Stand firm we are with you: if you are attacked,
we will help you, and if you are driven out, we too will go out with
you." The secret of this intrigue was exposed by Allah Himself, as has
been explained in Surah Al-Hashr: 11-17 above. 
</p>
<p>
But in spite of being so
exposed the reason why the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace)
was still treating him kindly was that he had a large band of the
hypocrites behind him. Many of the chiefs of both the Aus and the
Khazraj were his supporters. At least a third of the population of
Madinah consisted of his companions, as became manifest on the
occasion of the Battle of Uhud. Under such conditions it was not
prudent to wage a war with these internal enemies combined with the
external enemies. On this very account, in spite of being fully aware
of their hypocrisy the Holy Prophet continued to deal with them
according to their apparent profession of faith for a long time. On
the other hand, these people too neither possessed the power nor the
courage to fight the believers openly as disbelievers, or to join
hands with an invader and face them in the battlefield. Apparently
they were a strong hand but inwardly they had the weakness which Allah
has vividly portrayed in Surah Al-Hashr: 12-14. Therefore; they
thought their well being lay only in posing as Muslims. They came to
the mosque, offered the prayers gave away the <em>zakat</em>, and would make
tall oral claims to the faith, which the true Muslims never felt the
need to do. They would offer a thousand justifications for each of
their hypocritical acts by which they would try to deceive their
compatriots, the Ansar, into believing that they were with them. By
these designs they were not only saving themselves from the
disadvantages which could naturally accrue if they separated
themselves from the Ansar brotherhood, but also taking advantage of
the opportunities to make mischief which were available to them as
members of the Muslim brotherhood. 
</p>
<p>
These were the causes which enabled
Abdullah bin Ubayy and like minded hypocrites to get an opportunity to
accompany the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace) in his
campaign against the Bani al-Mustaliq, and they simultaneously
engineered two great mischiefs which could shatter the Muslim unity to
pieces. However, by virtue of the wonderful training in discipline
that the Muslim; had received through the pure teaching of the Quran
and the companionship of the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) both
mischiefs were stopped in time, and the hypocrites themselves were
disgraced instead. One of these was the mischief that has been
mentioned in Surah An-Nur above, and the other which has been mentioned
in this Surah. 
</p>
<p>
This incident has been related by Bukhari, Muslim, Ahmad,
Nasai, Tirmidhi, Baihaqi, Tabari, Ibn Marduyah, Abdur Razzaq, lbn
Jarir Tabari, Ibn Sa'd and Muhammad bin Ishaq through many reliable
channels. In some traditions the expedition in which it took place has
not been named, and in others it has been connected with the Battle of
Tabuk. But the authorities on the battles fought by the Holy Prophet
and history are agreed that this incident took place on the occasion
of the campaign against the Bani al- Mustaliq. The following seems to
he the real story when all the traditions are read together. 
</p>
<p>
When
after crushing down the power of Bani al- Mustaliq the Islamic army
had made a halt in the settlement at the well of al Muraisi. Suddenly
a dispute arose between two men on taking water from the well; One of
them was Jehjah bin Masud Ghifari, a servant of Hadrat Umar appointed
to lead his horse. The other was Sinan bin Wabar al-Juhani, whose
tribe was an ally of a clan of the Khazraj. Harsh words between them
led to fighting and Jehjah kicked Sinan, which the Ansar, on account
of their ancient Yamanite tradition, took as a great insult and
disgrace. At this Sinan called out the men of Ansar and Jehjah the
Emigrants for help. Hearing about the quarrel Ibn Ubayy started
inciting and calling the men of the Aus and the Khazraj to come out
and help their ally. From the other side some Emigrants also came out.
The dispute might have led to a fight between the Ansar and the
Muhajirin themselves at the very place where they had just fought an
enemy tribe jointly and crushing it had halted in its own territory.
But hearing the noise the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) emerged
and said :"what is this call of paganism? What have you to do with such
a call? Leave it: it is a dirty thing." Thereupon the leading men of
the two sides met and settled the dispute; Sinan pardoned Jehjah and
peace was restored. 
</p>
<p>
After this every person whose heart was
disaffected came to Abdullah bin Ubayy and they all said to him,
"Until now we had our hopes attached to you and you were protecting us,
but now it seems you have become a helper of these paupers against us.
Ibn Ubayy was already enraged: These words made him burst out, thus:
"This is what you have done to yourselves. You have given these people
shelter in your country, and have divided your property among them. So
much so that they have now become our rivals. Nothing so fits us and
the paupers of Quraish(or the Companions of Muhammad) as the ancient
saying 'Feed your dog to fatten it and it will devour you.' If you
hold back your property from them, they would go elsewhere. By God,
when we return to Madinah, the honorable ones will drive out from it
the mean ones." 
</p>
<p>
Zaid bin Arqam, a young boy, also happened to be
present in the assembly at that time. He heard this and mentioned it
before his uncle, and his uncle who was one of the Ansar chiefs went
to the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) and told him the whole story.
The Holy Prophet called Zaid and asked him what had happened and he
repeated every word of what he had heard. The Holy Prophet said, "Zaid,
you are perhaps displeased with Ibn Ubayy; you might have been
mistaken in hearing; you. might have imagined Ibn Ubayy said this."
But Zaid was sure and firm. He said, "No, I swear by God I have heard
him say this and that." Thereupon the Holy Prophet called Ibn Ubayy,
and he came and swore that he had not said any such thing. The people
of the Ansar also said "Sir, a boy says this : he might have been
mistaken in what he heard lbn Ubayy is a venerable old man and our
chief. Do not believe what a boy says against him." The elderly people
of the tribe reproved Zaid also, who became depressed and held his
peace. But the Holy Prophet knew Zaid as well as Abdullah bin Ubayy.
Therefore, he fully understood what had actually happened. 
</p>
<p>
When Hadrat
Umar came to know of this, he came to the Holy Prophet and
said:"Please allow me to put this hypocrite to the sword. Or, if you
do not think it is fit to give me the permission you may tell Muadh
bin Jabal, or Abbad bin Bishr, or Sad bin Mu'adh, or Muhammad bin
Maslamah from among the Ansar, to go and kill him."But the Holy
Prophet said: "No, the people will say Muhammad kills his own
Companions." After this he ordered the people to set off immediately,
although it was at a time when the Holy Prophet was not accustomed to
travel. The forced march continued for 30 hours at a stretch so that
the people became exhausted. Then he halted, and as soon as they
touched the ground they fell asleep. This he did to distract their
minds from what had happened at the well of al-Muraisi. On the way,
Hadrat Usaid bin Hudair, an Ansar chief, met the Holy Prophet, and
said:"O Messenger of Allah, today you ordered the people to set off at
a time which was disagreeable for traveling, a thing you have never
done before."The Holy Prophet replied: "Have you. not heard of what
your friend said?" When he asked who he meant, the Holy Prophet
replied:Abdullah bin Ubayy. He asked what he had said. The Holy
Prophet answered: "He has asserted that when he returns to Madinah the
honorable ones will drive out from it the mean ones. He answered :
"By God, O Messenger of Allah, you are the honourable one and he is
the mean one; you will drive him out whenever you want to." 
</p>
<p>
By and by
the news spread among the Ansar soldiers and it enraged them against
Ibn Ubayy. The people advised him to go to the Holy Prophet (upon whom
be Allah's peace) and request for his forgiveness, but he retorted :
"You asked me to believe in him, and I believed in him; you asked me
to pay the zakat on my property, and I paid the zakat too; now the only
thing left is that I should bow down to Muhammad."This further enraged
the believing Ansar and everyone' started reproaching and cursing him
roughly. When the caravan was about to enter Madinah, Abullah, the son
of Abdullah bin Ubayy, stood before his father with a drawn out sword,
and said: "You had said that when you reached Madinah, the honorable
ones would drive out the mean ones. Now, you will know who is
honorable you or Allah and His Messenger. By God, you cannot enter
Madinah until the Messenger of Allah (upon whom be Allah's peace)
permits you to enter." At this Ibn Ubayy cried out: "O people of
Khazraj, look, my own son is preventing me from entering Madinah." The
people conveyed this news to the Holy Prophet, and he said : "Tell
Abdullah to let his father come home."Abdullah said, "If this is the
Holy Prophet's order, then you may enter."Thereupon the Holy Prophet
said to Hadrat Umar: "Now what do you think, Umar? Had you killed him
on the day when you asked my permission to kill him, many people would
have trembled with rage. Today if I order them to kill him, they will
kill him immediately."Hadrat Umar replied "By God, I realize there was
greater wisdom behind what the Apostle of Allah said than what I
said."' 
</p>
<p>
These were the circumstances under which this Surah was sent
down most probably after the Holy Prophet's return to Madinah.
</p>

